TENNIS WHAT NEXT – The top 2 players in the world Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have claimed 10 of the last 12 titles in Dubai and will be the two top seeds this year. Andy Murray, who has moved up to Number 3, will also play in Dubai two weeks after losing in the quarter finals in Rotterdam against Giles Simon. Murray has been drawn in the same bottom half as Federer. Diego Sampaolo
Federer made a winning debut with a 6-3 6-1 victory over Mikhail Youzhny in his debut in Dubai in a nearly perfect match where he converted on his four of his seven break point chances. Youzhny went up 3-2 winning a game to love. The first set went on serve until the crucial seventh game when Roger converted on his fourth break point chance for 4-3. From then on Federer reeled off five consecutive games and got the second break to claim the first set.
Federer broke again early in the second set and held serve to open up a 3-0 lead. Youzhny won his first game since 3-all in the first set in the fourth game. Federer rallied from 0-30 to earn a break point and converted on it to pull away to 4-1 en route to winning his 16th head-to-head match against the Russian player after just 56 minutes.
The Swiss Maestro is the defending champion in Dubai and will be looking to win his seventh title after 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2012 and 2014. He played his first match since his shock defeat against Andreas Seppi in Melbourne.
Simona Halep will not defend her Doha title the week as she withdrew from the tournament after her triumph in Dubai due to abdominal and ankle problems. The line-up in Doha features Number 3 and Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, Number 5 Caroline Wozniacki Number 8 Agnieszka Radwanska and Number 9 Ekaterina Makarova, Venus Williams and Flavia Pennetta who came back from a set down to edge past Svetlana Kuznetsova 3-6 6-4 6-2. After losing the first set Pennetta saved three break points in the sixth game before breaking serve in the next game with a down-the lone backhand shot. Pennetta broke serve twice in the third set in the fifth and in the seventh games. Pennetta will face a very tough second round match against Agnieszka Radwanska who leads 7-4 in their head-to-head matches.
The first round features a blockbuster match between Angelique Kerber and Viktoria Azarenka. The Belarussian player will play her first match since the Australian Open and the first tournament since the start of her coaching relationship to Wim Fissette. There could a possible third round between Azarenka and Caroline Wozniacki. Another intriguing first round match is the Spanish derby between Garbine Muguruza and Carla Suarez Navarro in a re-match of the Dubai quarter final won by Muguruza. The winner of this match could face Karolina Pliskova.
In the Acapulco Mexico Open top-seed David Ferrer will be looking to claim his back-to-back title after his triumph in Rio de Janeiro. The Acapulco will be played on hard-court for the second consecutive year. The Mexican tournament will also feature Kevin Anderson, Grigor Dimitrov and Delray Beach winner Ivo Karlovic.
Maria Sharapova will top the bill in the Acapulco women’s tournament which also features Rio Open champion Sara Errani.
Rafa Nadal will be looking to bounce back from his Rio de Janeiro semifinal loss to Fabio Fognini when he plays this week in Buenos Aires.
